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Congress Approves Ukraine Aid, Sanctions On Russia

The House and Senate approved $1 billion in loan guarantees for Ukraine and sanctions on Moscow for Russia's annexation of Crimea.

Thursday's voice vote in the Senate and a 399-19 vote in the House for a different version of the bill came just hours after the International Monetary Fund pledged $18 billion in assistance for the former Soviet satellite.

Among other things, the aid package directs the White House to help the new Ukrainian government identify and recover illegal assets claimed by the country's ousted pro-Russian president, Viktor Yanukovych, as well as members of his family and government.

The vote is a show of support for President Obama, who has already announced the sanctions against the government of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Washington Post says the House bill "puts into law several executive orders issued by Obama in recent days to punish Russian officials tied to the uprising in Ukraine and Crimea.

"The House measure authorizes the Treasury Department to closely monitor Russian banks for signs that they are undermining Ukrainian assets; bolsters funding for Voice of America and Radio Free Europe broadcasts into Ukraine and Crimea; and calls for increased U.S. investments in the Ukrainian economy."

The House and Senate still must agree on minor differences in the two chambers' version of the bill.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Scott Neuman is a reporter and editor, working mainly on breaking news for NPR's digital and radio platforms.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

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